What is professional recognition?
The purpose of professional recognition is to gain access in another Member State of the European Economic Area to the same profession as that for which a person is qualified in his/her Member State of origin and to pursue such profession there under the same conditions as nationals.
This system is aimed exclusively at regulated professions and is directed towards nationals of the European Economic Area (EEA) wishing to pursue their profession in a Member State other than that in which they acquired their qualification.
Requirements concerning the origin of the diploma and nationality must therefore be met in order to be eligible for professional recognition. If your diploma was obtained outside the European Economic Area, the path to recognition is that of equivalence. We invite you to consult the section of our website dedicated to equivalences of higher education diplomas.
The mechanisms, criteria and professions affected by professional recognition are set out in Directive 2005/36/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 September 2005 on the recognition of professional qualifications.
What is a regulated profession?
A regulated profession is an activity or a set of professional activities, in relation to which access to, pursuit of or any of the ways in which such profession is practised (e.g. the use of a professional title) is directly or indirectly linked to the possession of specific professional qualifications (diploma, training, completion of professional traineeships, etc.) in accordance with specific laws, regulations or administrative provisions.
Examples of regulated professions: doctors, pharmacists, accountants, real estate agents, architects, teachers, etc.
To find out whether or not a profession is regulated in Belgium, you can consult the European database of regulated professions or contact the Belgian Help Centre for the recognition of professional qualifications.
Our Directorate manages the professional recognition of teacher qualifications acquired within the European Economic Area (EEA) with a view to performing teaching post(s) in the schools of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation.
Example: you are a mathematics teacher in Spain and you want to work as a mathematics teacher in FW-B under the same conditions as teachers trained in FW-B.
The FW-B is also the competent authority for the professional recognition of health care professions (doctors, dentists, nurses, clinical psychologists, etc.).
If you hold a diploma issued by a member country of the European Economic Area (EEA) allowing you to practise a health care profession, you must contact the Directorate for the Accreditation of Health Care Providers if you wish to practise in Belgium: http://www.enseignement.be/index.php?page=27056
For all other regulated professions (architects, veterinarians, lawyers, etc.), please consult the European database of regulated professions or contact the Belgian Help Centre for the recognition of professional qualifications to ascertain the competent authority.
